Deadline stabilizer



Nov. 30, 1954 A. L. STONE 2,695,770.

DEADLINE STABILIZER iled Nov. 12, 1948 I5 Sheets-Sheet l 1 7L859? L. 5'70/VE,

INVEAHUE i f w A. L. STONE DEADLINE STABILIZER Nov. 30, 1954 Filed Nov. 12, 1948 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 III HLBEQTL. $70A/6, lA/VENIUE.

7 K HI'TOBNZFVS Nov. 30, 1954 A. STONE 2,695,770

DEADLINE STABILIZER iled Nov. 12, 1948 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 lw'm m v m m 5507' arm/E,

' I N V EN TOR.

HTTOBNEVS' 595,170 DEADLINE 2STABILIZER Albert L. 'Stone, Halos Verdes .Estates, Calif .assignor to Byron Jackson .60., .Los Ange'les, .Galif., a corporation of Delaware This invention relates :to t the =well-idrilling art. In the drilling of wells .by theirotary methoda drill strung is sus- .pendedjina derrick by:meansiofraicableor'wire line which .is reeved .over acrown block ion the :top :of the derrick and a travelling :block which-travels vertically within the derrick. the end of the drilling line wound upon a spooling :drum and .the other :end is fixed an; a location near or :below the derrick :fioor. That portion "of the drilling line which extends from therfixed end to the crown block is .known in 1the:art:as ithe fideadline" It is the purpose o'fvmy invention to provide "improved means for stabilizingtthis deadline :aga'inst lateral vibration. and whipping during drilling operations.

Whipping of 1118 deadlinesmayicause fouling oftthe line against the :fingerboard onother parts of the :derrick struc- .ture :and thus damage lithe iline by abrasion. Furthermore, continual whipping :of :the line may result in damage to individual :stra-nds =of the dine by fatigue rat the point where the lineienters lthe :groove -in the=nonrotary or fdead sheave of fihe crown block. Anotherundes'irable consequence of Whipping of the deadline 'is the adverse effect upon the weight-indicator unit which conventionally is attached to the deadline to measure the tension therein in :order ito :obtain a measure of the total weight supported lby zthe -travelling block. Vibration of the deadline :causes fluctuation of the weight indicator pointer rendering 'it .difiicult to ob'tain a proper reading therefrom, and also causes excessive wear of 'the various moving parts of the weight indicator. assembly.

It is essential that the stabilizer which is to he applied .to the line .to prevent whippin'g bemounted so that'it'can be accurately adjusted with respect :to the position *offthe deadline. ,Sinceritis desirable that the deadline stabilizer be of universal application .and-tbe iadapted'tobeused 'on various derrick installations, an adjustable 'mount ing is of primary importance. Various types of crown "blocks have the dead sheave located in various positions, and the hold-down devices :used for anchoring the deadline are also of various'designs :and may ibeypositioned in various locations relative to the derrick, depending upon the particular installation. may occupy slightly or widely differing positions within the derrick, dependingupon the particular derrick, tcrown block and. hold-down device.

It is therefore the principal object of .this invention to provide a novel form-of deadlinestabilizer havingnovel adjustment means for positioning it in :axial alignment with the deadline.

Another object is to provide an adjustable mounting for a deadline stabilizer which enables the stabilizer .to

be carried by the derrick and adjusted with respect to its inclination and position to avoid drag "of the deadline due to stretch under varying load conditions.

Other objects and advantages will appear from a consideration of the following specification and illustrated in the drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a preferred embodiment of my invention.

Figure 2 is a plan view thereof.

Figure 3 is a front elevation.

Figure 4 is a sectional elevation taken substantially on the lines 44 as shown in Figure 3.

Figure 5 is a plan view of a modified form.

Figure 6 is a side elevation thereof.

Figure 7 is a plan view of a further modification.

Figure 8 is a side elevation thereof.

The result is that the deadline United States Patent '0 portion .11 and carries a ball 24 on its outer end. The

of mounting bracket.

2,695,770 Patented Now. 3.0, 19.54

Figure 9 is a front elevation showing adjustment in -'one plane.

mate location required, and final alignment is obtained by manipulating the stabilizer unit #about the universal joint. in the embodiment shown in Figures 5 and *6 a ball and socket =universal join't is also provided, but .a further endwise adjustment is provided by a novel form In F-igllres 7 to 10 the universal joint is not fused and the stabiliZer-unit'is adjustably carried on trunnions which extend in one direction and which are :mounted for endwise movement in another direction on the same form of bracket assembly shown in Figures 5 and 6. iln all 'emb'odimen'ts mating joint fittings cooperate to provide adjustability between the stabilizer unit and the mountingassembly.

Considering 'in more :detail .the embodiments of this invention as shown in the drawings, complementary semi- :oylindrical shell halves 10 and are attached to afinger- :board mounting .base .12 by means "of-a universal joint assembly tgenerallydesi'gnated 13. The complementary shell :ha'lves "wand 11 are joined by a 'suitable hinge struc ture 14 near their upper =and 'lower abutting edges andare provided with mating lugs 15 and 16 adjacentiheirother abutting edge. The lugs ere connected "by the pivoted bolt 17 .and wing unit 18. The shell ha'lves receive a resilient diner 19 which is preferably formed of natural or synthetic rubber ror-ef resilient'rubber-like composition. The #resilien't liner =19'is provided with-an axial 'bore 20 normally .of slightly llarger diameter than the nominal size of .the deadline cable 2 1. Theliner 19 is split radially on'one sideaas Sh0wn at'22 s0 that it maybe slipped laterally .into position 'on the deadline. "Upon being so fitted t0 the deadline the resilient liner 19 is embraced within the shell halves 10 and ll and thepivoted bolt 17 is tightened =so .=that the :shell halves'squeeze the liner 19 and cause it to grip the deadline -21. Theengagement of thetdeadline by tthe liner 19 is not'severe enough to pre- .vent aaxial movement ofthedeadl-ine but is: tight enough to apply an appreciable drag in the event of such-movement. This drag serves to dampen out the whipping movement of the deadline.

The iEII m'ZS lS welded or otherwise secured to the shell lt alli24 is received'within a two-part socket '25 defined by a housing 26 land .a :cap 227. Threaded elements 28 are :tightenedito clamp "the cap "27 and' housing "26 together to clamp theball'24r-imse'lectedposition. Lock washers may beprovided .for thethrea'ded -elements28 if desired. The fingerboard :mounting base "12 is "preferably formed integral with tthe' lrousing 26. Since the location of the deadline 12 and fingerboard 29 may varymaterially with different arrangements of the derrick '30, several elongated slots 31 are provided in the mounting base 29. These slots 31 extend both longitudinally and transversely :of the base 12 :as shown. Bolts 32 extend through the slots to nnchor the base 312 to the fingerboard 29. The axis of the stabilizer unit 33 may he approximately .alignejd :With'the .path of the deadline by *means of the bolts 32 which pass through the elongated slots 31, and the final angular adjustment is secured by manipulation of the universal joint 13.

A conventional safety line 34 may be attached to an eye 35 formed on the shell portion 10.

Referring to the modification shown in Figures 5 and the stabilizer unit 33 may be substantially the same as that previously described and includes the same shell halves 10 and 11 enclosing the resilient liner 19. The ball 24 carried on the arm 23 is received within a socket, but the socket halves are formed by a base /having a cap 51 secured thereto by means of threaded elements 52. A socket 53 formed on the base 50 extends in a direction opposite to that of the arm 23 and is adapted to receive one end of a threaded bar 54 or carrier. The bar 54 is secured to the base 50 by any convenient means such as, for example, by welding. This bar extends through a cylindrical tube 55 on the, support assembly generally designated 56. The support assembly 56 comprises a plate 57 to which is centrally welded the cylindrical tube 55 and the clamping supports 58 which serve tosecure the plate relative to a portion 59 of the derrick assembly 30. The clamps 58 may comprise a continuous bar having its ends threaded and extending through apertures formed in the plate 57. Retaining nuts 60 hold the clamps 58 in assembled relationship.

The diameter of the tube 55 is slightly larger than that of the threaded bar 54 enabling the latter to be moved axially through the tube. Clamping nuts 61 are provided on the threaded bar 54 to secure the bar in adjusted position with respect to the support assembly 56. It will be noted in Figure 6 that the center of the ball and socket joint 13 is laterally offset from the axis of the threaded bar 54. This lateral ofi'set permits the base 50 to be swung at any desired angular position to secure lateral adjustment of the position of the stabilizer unit 33.

In that form of my invention shown in Figures 7 to 10, the same form of resilient insert 19 may be employed, but the enclosing shell may take a somewhat different form. The shell half 80 is bolted to the shell half 81 by means of the bolts 82. Rearwardly extending arms 83 on the shell portion 81 provide bearings for the laterally extending trunnions 84 formed on the forward end of the carrier or threaded bar 85. Bearing caps 86 cooperate with the arms 83 to secure the arms to the trunnions. In effect the trunnions are clamped between the bearing caps 86 and the arms 83 by means of the bolts 87. The supporting clamp assembly 88 may be substantially identical to that described in connection with the previous embodiment. Figure 9 shows how the stabilizer unit generally designated 89 may be tilted about the axis of the threaded bar 85, and Figure shows how the angular adjustment in a plane at right angles thereto may be accomplished. The adjustment as shown in Figure 10 may be made by loosening the clamping bolts 87 to permit the stabilizer unit 89 to move about the axis of the trunnions 84.

It will be understood from the above descriptions that each of the three embodiments provides a universal mounting for a deadline stabilizer such that the position of the bore in the liner 19 may be moved both laterally and transversely, and in addition the bore may be inclined at any desired angle within the limits. imposed by the particular construction employed.

Having fully described my invention, it is to be understood that I do not wish to be limited to the details herein set forth, but my invention is of the full scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A cable stabilizer for dampening the lateral vibration and whipping of a cable of a rotary oil well drilling derrick, comprising in combination: a pairof nonresilient members defining a shell, a liner of resilient material having at least a portion of its outer boundary confined within the shell and having a central opening extending therethrough to receive a cable, said shell and said liner forming a stabilizer unit, a carrier having a longitudinal axis and having a first joint fitting, a second joint fitting formed integrally with one of said nonresilient members and mating with said first joint fitting to mount said unit on said carrier for pivotal movement about a point spaced from said central opening and laterally offset from the longitudinal axis of said carrier, said first joint fitting and said second joint fitting being adjustably interengaged to permit pressure to be applied to one of said fittings by the other fitting to retain said unit in an adjusted position, a

mounting member including means to secure said member to an element of a derrick structure, and adjustable connecting means supporting said carrier on said member to provide adjustment of 'said unit with respect to said derrick element, said unit being capable of universal pivotal movement with respect to said derrick element.

2. A cable stabilizer for dampening the lateral vibration and whipping of a cable of a rotary oil well drilling derrick, comprising in combination: a pair of nonresilient members defining a shell, a liner of resilient material having at least a portion of its outer boundary confined within the shell and having a central opening extending therethrough to receive a cable, the liner having a slot extending from the central opening to the outer boundary of the liner to permit the liner to be applied laterally to a cable, said shell and said liner forming a stabilizer unit, a carrier having a longitudinal axis and having a base and a cap for said base, said base and cap comprising a ball socket offset laterally from the longitudinal axis of said carrier, a ball within said socket and formed integrally with one of said nonresilient members, said ball and socket pivotally mounting said unit on said carrier for universal pivotal movement, said base and cap being adjustably interengaged to apply pressure to said ball to retain said unit in an adjusted position, a mounting member including means to secure said member to an element of a derrick structure, and adjustable connection means supporting said carrier on said member to provide adjustment of said unit with respect to said derrick element.

3. A cable stabilizer for dampening the lateral vibration and whipping of a cable of a rotary oil well drilling derrick, comprising in combination: a pair of nonresilient members defining a shell, a liner of resilient material having at least a portion of its outer boundary confined Within the shell and having a central opening extending therethrough to receive a cable, said shell and said liner forming a stabilizer unit, a carrier having a longitudinal axis and having a first pair of joint fittings, a second pair of joint fittings formed integrally with one of said nonresilient members and mating with said first pair of joint fittings to mount said uniton said carrier for pivotal movement about an axis spaced from said central opening and substantially perpendicular to said longitudinal axis, said first pair of fittings and said second pair of fittings being adjustably interengaged 'to permit pressure to be applied to one of said pairs of fittings by at least one of theother pair of fittings to retain said unit in an adjusted position, a mounting member including means .to secure sa d member to an element of a derrick structure, and ad ustable connectingvmeans supporting said carrier on said member to provide adjustment of said unit'with respect to said derrick element, said unit being capable of ulmversal pivotal movementwith respect to said derrick e ement;

References Cited in the file of, this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 195,728 Roberts Oct. 2, 1877 271,381 Van Tassel Jan. 30, 1883 290,455 Miller Dec. 18, 1883 811,350 Wright -2 Jan. 30,1906 958,052 Williams May 17, 1910 1,399,461 Childs Dec. 6, 1921 1,594,784 Ligon Aug. 3, 1926 1,598,482 Lance et al; Aug. 31, 1926 1,770,721 Willis July 15, 1930 2,285,742 Miller June8, 1942 2,440,571 Bow Apr. 27, 1948 

